Re-routing development in peripheral regions: exploiting anchor institution networks for micro/SME enterprise growth and innovation

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to explore the socio-cultural barriers to enterprise in economically disadvantaged communities across five countries: UK, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece. Design/methodology/approach This study’s EU-funded project took the form of community-based participatory action research. This study focusses on the data from the interviews and network mapping exercises. A total of 40 individual interviews took place, with interviewees from communities with entrenched disadvantage and limited opportunities for employment and education and low rates of business start-ups. Findings The research shows that barriers to entrepreneurship can be overcome where a trusted representative (or “mediator”) can act as a bridge, facilitating access to new knowledge and networks. This approach can be used to support micro/SMEs for growth and innovation. In targeting these businesses, policymakers need to recognise the power imbalances between actors and take steps to overcome these, by establishing links with community-based mediators who can act as trusted interlocutors, enabling sustainable relationships to be developed. Originality/value This research targets many often hard-to-reach groups and offers insights into the lived experiences of those who often operate at the peripheries. In doing so, it shows how trusted individuals can be used to remove barriers and promote growth, making clear links between theory to practice.

Do crises Really Catalyze Creative Destruction? A Critical Reflection on Firm Survival

“…However, the general analysis in Spain could reduce the focus on specific situations, like that experienced in Galicia, which is particularly relevant because of its specificities as a peripheral region. In this regard, literature does exist that studies the effects on business dynamics in peripheral areas (Böckerman & Maliranta, 2007; Bosma et al, 2011; Psycharis et al, 2014) as well as the importance of these areas in economic development (Baumgartinger-Seiringer et al, 2022; Downs et al, 2023; Sánchez-Carreira et al, 2019). The center-periphery model of industrial structure is related to regional inequalities (Krugman, 1992), thus the importance of understanding which factors affect business dynamics in a peripheral region (Mazzola et al, 2022) such as Galicia.…”